It’s always so great to see Nepali talents shine globally!
From watching Amrita Acharia playing Irri in Game of Thrones to seeing Arthur Gunn and Santosh Shah doing their thing on major international platforms; it always brings us joy to see our talented folks making a name for themselves globally. The most recent addition to the list is Amita Suman. The 23-year-old Nepali British actress is not just part of one of the most popular Netflix series right now, but plays one of the lead roles.
Amita stars as Inej Ghafa in in Shadow and Bone that premiered last month. The fantasy adventure series, based on Leigh Bardugo’s novel of the same name, also stars The Punisher and Westworld star Ben Barnes, Jessie Mei Li, Freddy Carter, Archie Renaux and Danielle Galligan, among others.
So what do we know about Amita?
Amita moved to Brighton, England with her family at age 7. Her first language is Bhojpuri and she learned to read, write and speak English only after coming to the UK in 2004. “(In Nepal), my days were filled with adventures – looking for fresh mangoes or being chased by cows, eagles, and finding king cobras chilling out in our roofs made of hay”, she told Grazia India in a recent inverview.
Having graduated from British drama school, Academy of Live and Recorded Arts in 2018; she already had appeared in a number of shows including Doctor Who and The Outpost before her big Netflix debut.
No surprise, Amita is thrilled to be part of the series and not just because it’s a powerful role but also because she is excited for the future roles that might come her way. “I grew up thinking there was this narrow road for me. And these were the only characters that I would get to play. I felt for people who were coming in the industry, who are in the ethnic minority, who are facing the same problem.”, she had shared with Seventeen. “The industry’s got a long way to go, but I’m hoping that this part for me will widen my casting and for everyone else as well.”
So how exactly did she land this role?
“I know my experience was that I sent a self-tape through. In my breakdown, it had character fan art of what Inej looked like, and I was just astounded. The similarities that I shared with her and the fact that this is actually made for a Brown actress and not just ticking that diversity box or changing it to tick that diversity box. I did my self-tape and I thought it was really, really, really bad. I wanted the part so much that I felt like, no matter what I did, it was just awful”, she told Collider.
“Luckily, I had a callback straight away, went into the room, and got the part pretty soon after that. I was fully expecting a really long audition process, but it was pretty short and sweet. When I was officially told that I’d been cast, it was one of the greatest days of my life because I really wanted this part.”
Inej is a badass character who literally plays with knives. “I didn’t really get any professional knife training. I was just handed these 14 beautiful knives and whenever I had the chance, I was flinging them around and spinning them and breaking quite a few, as well. It was great because with Inej, her knives aren’t just her weapons. With Inej, her knives are her reason for her moral compass and a reminder of her always wanting to try to do good with them.”
Well, this is amazing to say the least. Amita has been recieving positive reviews for her work from both fans and critics, calling her the “perfect choice” for the character.
Can’t wait for next season and her future projects. You go, girl!
Go follow her on Instagram and Twitter. Like NOWWW!
